Story of a Girl
by xRAiNBOWxx
Summary: As Sakura starts highschool, and everyone has new crushes, she realizes that love isn't such an easy thing. . .kibahina, sasusaku, narusaku, shikaino
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own the anime/manga, **_**Naruto, **_**or any of the following characters. (…I WISH!) **

_**IMPORTANT NOTE YOU SHOULD READ OR ELSE I'M GOING TO RIP YOUR HEAD OFF!**_**: I'm planning to do Sakura's POV throughout the whole story. I'll only notify you when it's someone else's POV or if it's in 3****rd**** person POV. (Though, I highly doubt I'll ever do 3****rd**** person. But, just in case.) So yeah, to start off, it's Sakura's POV.**

**Chapter One**

**School cafeteria **

**Lunch time**

"Isn't Kiba-kun so cute?!" Hinata swooned as she blushed when he looked up at her and smiled. I tore my eyes away from my mystery meat and looked at Kiba to Hinata. They would make a good match and I knew how much Hinata had a crush on Kiba, and I was pretty sure that Kiba liked her too. And if he didn't, well, when she confesses to him, his heart would probably be stolen by her too.

"Why don't you go up and ask him out?" I winked and nudged her. She blushed furiously. Ino fake-choked.

"Are you kidding me?! Sakura, Sakura, Sakura, you have no knowledge in these kind of things. She can't just go up to him and _ask him out_! That's definitely a guy's job! A girl's job is to confess her _feelings _to him, and _then _he'll ask her out. Do you understand now?" Ino taught. I rolled my eyes and poked my mystery meat with the fork. It was so hard that the fork wouldn't slice through the "meat." Now, I definitely didn't want to know what this really was made out of. I decided to let it sit there, and wait for my friends to finish up their meals. I glanced back at Hinata who was still gazing at Kiba.

"Alright then, if you're not going to ask him out, why don't you _confess _your love for him then?" I suggested with a snort as I rolled my eyes which landed on Ino. She smiled and nodded at me with an expression that said: 'I've-taught-you-well.'

Hinata gulped. "Well, I. . .what if he doesn't like me?! It'll be so embarrassing then!"

"No it won't! He'll probably like you back if you confess to him!" I pushed.

"It's easier said than done," Hinata pouted. True. I decided to shut up.

"You're right! But you need more confidence in yourself, girl!" Ino cried. Good. Now, we were both pushing Hinata. Hinata gulped and twiddled her fingers.

"Well, I. . .I don't know!" Hinata squeaked. I stood up and picked up my tray.

"Tell you what, why don't _I _tell him for you?" I suggested with a wink. They both looked up at me. Hinata was shaking her head vigorously.

"No! That's even more embarrassing!" Hinata wailed. I stepped over the seat and started walking backwards, carrying my tray.

"Oh, come on, Hinata! It's just a—" I began but then I felt my back bump into someone, or something. I quickly caught my balance and turned around and looked up to see Naruto, also carrying a tray of untouched mystery meat. We both stood like that for a moment until I jerked away.

"Oh, hey, Naruto," I greeted. Naruto was Hinata's ex-crush. She liked him until she became friends with Kiba and soon, she felt more comfortable around Kiba and fell for him instead.

Naruto grinned at me. "Hey, Sakura-chan! I see you didn't eat lunch either."

"Uh, yeah, maybe some other time when I feel like I need to vomit," I grinned back. To me, Naruto was just a friend even though we fought a little too much. (I always ended up punching or kicking him) but sometimes, we agreed on some things and were friends. He chuckled.

"I'll catch you later than," He said with a sweet smile and left. I felt myself smiling goofily back.

"Yeah, see you," I sighed. For a moment, I just stood like that, a bit dazed, until I quickly shook my head. _Get a grip of yourself! _I thought firmly as I stomped towards the trash can and pushed my milk carton inside and handed the tray to the lady washing the dishes at the counter. Then, I headed back to Ino and Hinata.

"Alright, Sakura! You've just got yourself a mission!" Ino beamed. Confused, I looked at Ino to Hinata who was looking down and blushing. I turned back to Ino. She winked at me. "Hinata finally gave in and decided to let you tell Kiba about her true feelings for him!" As she said that, she clasped her hands together against her cheek and batted her eyes overdramatically. I grinned and placed a hand on Hinata's shoulder.

"Don't worry, everything will go fine," I said. "I'll talk to him by the end of school." Her head suddenly jerked up and she turned to me instantly.

"W-what?! I-isn't that a little. . .too soon. . .?!" Hinata asked nervously as she bit her lower lip. Ino snorted. We ignored her.

"Nah, the faster, the better," I said. Suddenly, the bell rang for the end of lunch and start of class. I sighed. Lunch seemed so short these days. Ino and Hinata stood up with their trays as they hurried to place them at the counter and caught up with me.

"Ah, well, torture, here we come," Ino yawned as she stretched her arms. I smiled as we went to our lockers . My locker was bottom which I hated because sometimes books fell on my head when people with taller lockers near me tried to get something. I bent over, and set my combination on my lock and opened it, when suddenly, a huge textbook fell right on my head. _Oh terrific, _I thought with a groan as I 

rubbed my head and looked up to see who was the jerk who dropped something. Sasuke bent over and picked up the math textbook.

"Sorry," He muttered. His eyes lingered on me for a while, and he looked away.

"Ah, it's alright," I said quickly even though I knew he wasn't listening. My heart thumped wildly as I looked back down and quickly grabbed my math textbook too and I slammed the locker shut, and rushed into math class. _I'll pass Kiba a note during math class about Hinata's confession, _I thought as I took a seat.

Bell rang for class.

Chattering ended.

Class started.

When it was quiet enough, I quickly tore out a piece of paper from my notebook, and grabbed a pen from my pencil case as I scribbled down:

**Do you like Hinata? **

It was a start. I crumpled up the paper, took a quick glimpse at the teacher to see if he was looking this way, and when the coast was clear, I tossed it in front of me, in which Kiba was sitting. I sat perfectly still as I grabbed my pen again and pretended to take notes on what he was saying on my notebook, but in reality, I was just scribbling nonsense. I eyed Kiba as I saw him smooth out the paper and read it. Then, he placed the paper down on his desk, got a pencil and started writing. I smiled as I looked away and turned back to the teacher to my notebook, pretending to take notes. Then, without turning around, he tossed the crumpled up paper behind him which landed on my desk. Eagerly, I smoothed it out:

**Huh?**

So, he was going for the acting-dumb act. I sighed. This was going to be harder than I thought.

**You know what I mean! Do you like Hinata more than a friend? Anyways, Hinata does. She likes you way more than a friend, FYI. **

**Who?**

**I said, HINATA! Don't act dumb! **

**Oh, Hinata. **

**Yes, Hinata. So, do you like her too?**

Our conversation went on like that, him acting dumb, me getting frustrated. By the end of class, we used up ten pieces of crumpled up paper. The bell rang and finally, he gave me a real response. At least, I think it was a real response. It said:

**I'll show you. **

I looked up from the paper to Kiba. He ignored me as he stood up from his desk, and walked out of the classroom along with a bunch of other kids. I looked at the piles of crumpled up paper. _Oh great, he could've been nice enough to help me throw these away, _I thought as I gathered them up and threw them down the trash can. Then, I collected my books and quickly walked out of the room. _What did he mean by he'll show me? _I thought as I tried to look for him. Finally, I spotted him. He was with Hinata, and they were talking against the windows. I quickly shoved all my books inside my locker, jammed it close and sort of stayed near them, pretending to look out the window.

"Yeah, so, I was wondering, do you want to go out with me?" Kiba asked. My heart stopped. _Yes! Kiba, thank you, thank you, thank you! _I thought as I imagined the look on Hinata's face. She'd probably be blushing furiously by now.

"Ah, um, o-okay," Hinata stammered. _You owe me one, Hinata! _I thought proudly. I tore my eyes away from the window and hummed as I walked to my next class. I sighed. Hinata was so lucky. She got guys so easily. I felt my huge forehead with my hand. How was I going to get guys if I had a forehead so big? I moved my hand away as I sighed. I guess I just had to wait for the right guy. . .

**A/N: Yes, so, that was the first chapter! I'm sorry, it's not very. . .good. Kind of boring right now. But, I'm telling you, it will get much, much better later on! I have the whole story set in my mind and I'm even planning to write a sequel which I have the whole story set in my mind as well! Well, I hope you liked it! Please R & R! Critiques are highly welcome! 3 **

**P.S. Can you tell who Sakura likes? ;) **


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own the anime/manga, **_**Naruto, **_**or any of the following characters. (…I WISH!) I also do not own the song, **_**Keep Holding On **_**by Avril Lavigne. **

**Chapter Two**

**School soccer field**

**After school**

_You're not alone_

_Together we stand_

_I'll be by your side_

_You know I'll take your hand_

_When it gets cold_

_And it feels like the end_

_There's no place to go_

_You know I won't give in_

_No, I won't give in_

_Keep holding on_

'_Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through_

_Just stay strong_

'_Cause you know I'm here for you, I'm here for you_

_There's nothing you can say (nothing you can say)_

_Nothing you can do (nothing you can do)_

_There's no other way when it comes to the truth_

_So, keep holding on_

'_Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through. . ._

The song sank in as I listened. Ino, Hinata, and I were all lying down on the soccer field, listening to Ino's mp3 player in which she put to full blast so that no one had to wear headphones and we could all listen. It was a routine we did after school sometimes, then, we just hung out. I closed my eyes.

_So far away_

_I wish you were here_

_Before it's too late, this could all disappear_

_Before the doors close_

_And it comes to an end_

_With you by my side, I will fight and defend_

_I'll fight and defend_

_Yeah, yeah. . ._

"What're you guys doing?" Naruto's voice suddenly called. My eyes fluttered open as we all sat up to see Naruto and Sasuke. I stood up and waved.

"Just lazing around," I replied as they headed our way. Hinata and Ino stood up too as she turned off her mp3. "What're _you _doing here?" I asked. Naruto bounced down a basketball I didn't notice he was holding before.

"We were going to play basketball. Some of the other guys are coming soon, too. Do you want to play?" Naruto grinned teasingly. The girls and I exchanged looks.

"Is Kiba-kun coming?" Hinata asked, blushing. Naruto grinned mischievously. He obviously knew that they were going out.

"Definitely," Naruto replied. I grinned at him and then turned to Sasuke who had his hands jammed in his pockets and was looking away. I turned back to Naruto.

"Alright, we'll play," I said.

"We will?" Ino asked, disgusted.

"Why not?" I said.

"Okay," Hinata agreed.

"Eh, alright," Ino finally agreed.

"How are we going to divide teams?" Sasuke spoke for the first time. There was a moment of silence.

"Okay, who wants to be team captain, raise your hands," Naruto said as he raised his own hand up. Ino raised her hand too. "I guess we'll pick teammates." Soon, Shikamaru, Kiba, Shino, and Chouji came and they selected teams. Naruto and Ino did rock, paper, scissors to see who will choose teammates first and Ino won. She picked me first. I trotted after her as Naruto picked Sasuke. It soon came down to Naruto, Sasuke, Shino, Chouji against Ino, me, Hinata, Shikamaru, and Kiba. We started playing at the small basketball courtyard on the soccer field and kept laughing and joking. It wasn't a serious game, but it was nice and funny. Finally, Naruto's team won, according to him. But, I argued that we got a point just a second ago, and Naruto said that none of their team saw it. We bickered for a bit, until Ino broke up the fight and said, "It's not a serious game! Jeez." Naruto and I glared at each other one last time and then we sat down. Kiba laughed.

"Naruto, you and Sakura will make a cute couple," Kiba teased. I stiffened as I felt myself blush furiously.

"W-what?! Gah, Kiba, you idiot!" Naruto cried as he nudged Kiba hard. Kiba fell over but caught his balance and laughed. I looked away and ignored them but I couldn't keep myself calmed down and my heart thumped wildly. Soon, the awkward tension cleared and Naruto and I started talking again. We bickered a few more times and I kicked him sometimes too, but in the end, we started laughing. Soon, everyone was talking to each other. Even Sasuke. And I got to know him better. He was a little quiet, but he wasn't boring to be around. I felt comfortable around him, and I could tell he was comfortable around me, too. Soon, it was getting late, and we all had to go. Sasuke stood up.

"I guess I'll catch you later then," Sasuke said, turning to me.

"Yeah, bye, Sasuke-kun," I replied as I stood up and waved. He just nodded and walked away, swinging his backpack over his shoulder. I grinned. I was glad I got to know him better. I said bye to the rest of them and we all went our own ways. I was walking slowly to home, the bright full moon was shining the path, leading the way. I wasn't scared because the streets were bustling with people and cars and the shops were open with bright lights. But soon, I got to a quieter and smaller alley, the way I go home. I hummed to break the silence, when suddenly, I saw Naruto leaning against the brick wall and a bunch of older looking guys surrounding him. My eyes widened as I quickly hid myself, but peered to see what was going on.

"I gave you a chance, man! And you _still _don't have the money?! What the hell?!" The oldest looking guy said. I figured he must be the leader of the gang. At least, I think it was a gang.

Naruto didn't say anything.

The guy pushed him down on the street. My eyes widened. I tried to run to him, but my feet stayed glued to the ground. I knew that Naruto could fight, but even still, he wouldn't fight back. He just stayed there like a motionless doll as the guys beat him up, punching, and kicking him. My grip on the side of the wall tightened. I tried to run to them again, but my feet continued to stay glued. Finally, the leader picked him up by his collar. I saw Naruto's bruised face. I felt my eyes water with tears. I was so terrible and cowardly. How come I didn't go up and do anything?!

The leader leaned really close to Naruto's ear, as he whispered something I couldn't catch. Finally, he let go of him as he collapsed on the floor and the gang left. I slid down, against the wall as tears flowed down my cheeks. Questions whizzed through my head. Finally, I forced myself to push myself up and I staggered towards him. His eyes widened when he saw me. Especially because I was crying. I fell on him, hugging him tightly, and sobbed loudly. I don't know how long we stayed like that, but it seemed like eternity and the tears in my eyes wouldn't dry. I don't know why I was crying so much, but the tears kept flowing down as I hugged him tightly and his arms wrapped around me tightly back as I whispered, "_I'm sorry, Naruto. . ." _

_Keep holding on_

'_Cause you know we'll make it through, we'll make it through_

_Just stay strong_

'_Cause you know I'm here for you, I'm here for you. . ._

**A/N: Uhhh, so, yeah, that was the second chapter. I find it even more boring than the first. BUT, I'M TELLING YOU, IT WILL GET BETTER! Please, bear with me for a while as the story slowly gets better, okay? Thank you! Oh, and R & R please! Critique's are highly welcome as always! **

_**IMPORTANT NOTE THAT YOU SHOULD READ OR ELSE I'M GOING TO RIP YOUR HEAD OFF!: **_**The song at the way beginning & at the end & a little bit of it at the middle is called "Keep Holding On" and it's by Avril Lavigne. So don't ask me what the song's called, okay?! Kkthxbai. **


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

**Naruto's bedroom**

**Morning, before school **

My eyes slowly opened as I saw the few rays of sunlight through the curtained window. I suddenly felt a huge headache and I groaned a bit as I sat up, trying to figure out where this place was. I scratched my head, and yawned. When I felt more awake, I looked around. I was in a small bedroom I didn't recognize and there were clothes, empty instant ramen cups, chopsticks, and all sorts of different kinds of junk lying around. I looked down. I was still in my school uniform and I was in a single-sized bed. I finally decided to get up and see if anyone was here when I saw Naruto lying on the floor, snoring softly. It all then clicked. I was in Naruto's bedroom. But what was I doing here?! I tried to remember what happened last night but all I could remember was crying on Naruto's shoulder forever, and that's it. I looked back at him and couldn't help but smile. _Eh, what time is it?! _I suddenly thought as I quickly looked around, searching for a clock. Finally, I spotted a frog clock on his wall. _8:10?! _My eyes popped out. We were _so _late for class! I quickly jerked up and sat in front of Naruto as I shook him by his shoulders vigorously.

"Naruto! Naruto, wake up! We're super late for school!!" I screamed. His eyes instantly opened.

"Wha-?" Naruto mumbled. I quickly stood up and pulled Naruto up, too.

"Quick! Get changed!!" I hurried.

"Uh, yeah," Naruto said as he staggered over to pick up his uniform which was lying on the floor. I flew out of Naruto's bedroom to give him time to get dressed and quickly opened his refrigerator. There was absolutely nothing except a carton of rotten milk inside. I groaned. _How does he survive?! _I thought as I slammed the fridge closed. _I guess we'll just have to skip breakfast._ Naruto, then, stumbled out the door, fully dressed, and picked up his backpack as he swung it over his shoulder.

"Okay, let's go!" Naruto cried. I quickly got my backpack too and we were running out the door. We ran the whole way, not daring to stop to rest or catch our breath. Finally, we reached school and the soccer field was deserted which was a bad sign. Kids hung out at the soccer field before class started. If the field was empty, it meant that class had definitely already started long ago. We rushed to our lockers, grabbed our books, and Naruto swung open the class door as both panted in unison: "Sorry, we're late!" There was absolute silence except for our panting. The teacher and students stared at us, wide-eyed. She finally cleared her throat.

"Mr. Uzumaki, it's not so unusual for you to be so late, but, Miss Haruno, it certainly is a surprise to see you so late with Naruto here," The teacher said. I felt myself blush as I cleared my throat.

"Yeah, well, uh. . .I sort of, slept in," I stammered. She raised her eyebrow as her eyes traveled to Naruto.

"Uh, same here," Naruto coughed. A few students snickered. The teacher sighed.

"Get to your seats," She finally said as she took out her attendance book and marked us tardy. We trudged to our seats and I flopped down in mine. I saw every single student looking at Naruto to me. Did they have to stare? It wasn't _that _much of a shock. . .was it? I finally managed to ignore them, but I couldn't concentrate. My whole mind was whizzing around about what happened yesterday.

* * *

I slowly brushed the floor with the broom, but I wasn't really concentrating. My mind was on somewhere else. I hadn't talked to Naruto all day, and even when there was time, we avoided each other. I didn't know why though. Did we want to avoid what happened yesterday? I sighed. Suddenly, Ino nudged me. I turned to her. She was brushing the floor, too.

"Did you sleep with Naruto last night?" Ino asked. My eyes widened as I felt myself blush furiously.

"_What?!_" I blurted out a little too loudly. The whole class turned to me. I slapped my forehead with my hand. _Augh, I keep embarrassing myself,_ I thought as the students one by one looked away.

"Sheesh, you didn't have to yell," Ino hissed. I looked down, and continued to brush the floor.

"Sorry," I mumbled. Ino sighed.

"Anyways, you didn't, did you?"

"No! What makes you think that anyway?!"

"There's a rumor that's going around right now that you slept with Naruto last night because, well, first off, you and him were both late for class at the same time. . ._and, _your mom's worried sick. She's been calling all your friends to see if they've seen you which is another big clue! So really, where _were _you last night then?!" Ino cried. I sighed. _Great, a rumor going around that makes it seem like I'm a slut. Just what I need, _I thought.

"I don't feel like explaining."

"I don't care. I have the right to know."

"No, it's my business."

"Yes, but you're my best friend! And I was worried about you last night!"

There was a moment of silence.

"Okay fine, the truth was, I _was _sleeping at Naruto's house last night, but I didn't sleep with him!" I quickly added. Ino gaped.

"Why didn't you call your mom at least, then?!" She drilled. I groaned.

"Ino, can we just not talk about this right now?" I mumbled. She sighed.

"Fine," She finally replied as she walked away, brushing the floor. I looked up and saw Naruto staring at me. When he saw that I was looking back at him, he quickly turned back to the window, washing the windows. I continued to look at him for a moment and sighed as I went back to brushing the floor. _What was going on? How come Naruto and I couldn't talk to each other comfortably anymore? _I thought. I didn't want it to be this way. I wanted it to be like how it used to be. Suddenly, the bell rang for the end of class and the beginning of lunch. I dragged the broom towards the closet and placed it there when I turned around, Naruto was hovering over me. We were frozen like that for a moment until I finally blushed and looked away as I headed out of the classroom. I wasn't feeling very hungry and I was pretty sure that mystery meat would just make me sicker, so, I headed out to the soccer field where I just sat there, feeling the breeze.

Today was going terrible so far, and I was in an incredibly crappy mood. I suddenly saw two girls whispering and pointing to me. I glared at them and they quickly looked away and ran inside the cafeteria. I sighed.

"Not hungry?" A familiar voice asked. I turned around to see Sasuke, smirking at me. I looked down.

"Not exactly," I replied. He sat down beside me.

"So, is it true?" Sasuke asked, not looking at me. I looked at him out of the corner of my eye. I think I knew what he was talking about, but, I wasn't too sure.

"What do you mean?"

"The rumors."

"Oh. . .no."

"Mind telling me the real story then?"

Silence.

"I don't know. . ."

"Can't you trust me?"

"It's not that. . .it's just. . .I don't know!"

More silence. We just sat there like that. I found myself tugging at the grass of the soccer field. He finally turned to me.

"Sakura. . ." Sasuke said in a whispery voice. I looked up at him. "Will you go out with me?"

**A/N: -GASP- That's right, **_**Sasuke **_**asked out **_**Sakura. **_**Sasuke is OOC is this story, but, deal with it. It's **_**my **_**story. I can do whatever I want with the characters! **


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

**School soccer field**

**Lunch time**

"Is this some kind of practical joke?!" I demanded. His eyes widened.

"No. . .it's for real. . ." He mumbled. I studied him for a while. He looked truly honest about this, and he even looked a little uncomfortable and embarrassed. The silence thickened and I felt speechless. What was I supposed to say anyways? I looked away.

"I. . .I need time to think," I mumbled.

"I understand," He replied. We sat there in silence for a few moments. I pinched myself to see if this was a dream. It hurt. Okay, so, it wasn't a dream. But, I've heard that some people have pinched themselves in their dreams, and it hurt. . .which means, maybe I really _was _dreaming. Or perhaps I was hallucinating. I shook my head and sighed. I was seriously losing it. I started thinking about how it would be like to go out with Sasuke. It will be nice. . .all the girls jealous. But it could turn ugly. Plus, I liked Sasuke. I didn't know if I liked him more than a friend though. Suddenly, Naruto's face flashed through my mind. My eyes widened and I buried my face in my knees and hugged my knees. _Oh no. . .do I love Naruto? _I thought. I pressed my eyes closed. I didn't know the answer. But, I doubted Naruto would feel the same towards me. I sighed. I could give Sasuke a chance. It could be worth a shot. I could learn to love him. Besides, he would be my first boyfriend which would be kind of exciting. The mere thought of it made me grin and blush.

I looked up and smiled at him.

"Alright," I said bluntly, smiling. He stared at me, dumbfounded.

"Wait. . .so, you're agreeing to go out with me?" He stammered.

"Uh huh," I replied.

Silence.

He smiled a little back.

My heart thumped loudly. I quickly looked away and stood up, blushing.

"Uh, yeah, well, I better get going," I said, clearing my throat. "Lunch will be over soon." He stood up too and scratched the back of his head.

"Um, yeah, me too," He said, looking at the sky. I looked at him out of the corner of my eye. Today was such a crazy day. So many things were happening all at once.

He took my hand and smiled at me. "May I escort you to math class?"

I grinned. "Certainly," I replied as we walked together, hand-in-hand to our lockers. We walked in a pleasant silence but I felt like I was floating in midair. For the first time, today, I actually felt good. I turned to Sasuke.

"Sasuke-kun, I'm sorry. . .you missed lunch because of me," I apologized.

"No big deal. I'm not really into the menu these days, anyways," He grinned. I grinned goofily back and giggled as we reached our lockers. I felt people staring at us as we held hands. Finally, we let go hands briefly to get our books from our lockers, and my hand found his again as we headed to math class. I saw Ino and Hinata out of the corner of my eye, gaping at us. I winked at them as if I was a celebrity as Sasuke smiled at me one last time and he headed to his seat. I sort of collapsed happily in mine. But my happiness disappeared when I saw Naruto trudging into the classroom. He took a seat and didn't dare look up. Soon, class started, but once again, I couldn't concentrate on algebra. I kept finding myself looking at Naruto, worriedly. He just sat there, not even once glancing up. He kept staring at his desk, his arms folded in front of him on his desk. I pursed my lips. _That's it. After school, I'm going to talk to him. I can't stand this any longer, _I thought as class ended. I quickly gathered my books and headed to our next class with Sasuke of course. But even Sasuke's soft hand in mine as we walk down the halls didn't ease my discomfort for Naruto.

* * *

School ended after what seemed like eternity. I swung my backpack over my shoulder and closed the locker shut. Sasuke stepped over to me.

"Do you have time?" Sasuke asked. I beamed. I opened my mouth to say, yes, but closed it when I saw Naruto walk right passed us without saying bye. I remembered my promise to myself. My face dropped as I sighed.

"Sorry, not today. . .I'm kind of. . ._busy,_" I said reluctantly. "How about tomorrow?" I quickly added. He looked at me, a bit confused.

"Is something wrong?" He asked. _Damn, _I thought. _He picked up things easily. _

"No, no, of course not," I lied. "I'm just dreading the fact that. . .uh, my grandma's visiting tonight. And, um, well, she loves to nag to me about everything." Not true.

He chuckled.

"Alright, well, I'll see you tomorrow, then," He said. I grinned.

"Yeah, see you," I said. He started walking away. I sighed happily and started heading out the door. Ino caught up with me.

"Sakura! Sakura! Do you _really _think that you can get away with not telling me what's going on between you and Sasuke-kun?!" Ino cried. I groaned.

"Ino, this is not the time! I've got to find Naru-" I began, looking around for Naruto. No sign of him.

"Oh, you can find _Naruto _later! You've been avoiding me all day today, not giving me a straight answer for anything, really. I'd really like to know what's really going on now!" Ino cried. I rolled my eyes and turned to her.

"Look, I'll tell you _everything _tomorrow. I _promise. _But just leave me alone today, _please?! _It's been a crazy day and-and I just really need to sort this out! So, just be patient and I'll tell you _everything tomorrow_," I cried. It was Ino's turn to groan.

"_Tomorrow?!_ Girl, I don't think I can wait until _tomo-_!" Ino began to retort. But, I quickly ran away. "Hey! Sakura! _Sakura!! _Auuuugh!" I heard Ino call me from behind. _Sorry, sorry, Ino, _I thought as I looked right to left, searching for Naruto. No Naruto. I sighed. _I'll just go to his house then,_ I thought, as I stopped running.

I soon reached Naruto's house. I looked up, then, looked down. I was pretty sure he headed home by now. I walked extra slow so that he would be able to reach home first. But, maybe he wasn't home. Maybe he went somewhere else first. I pursed my lips. _It's worth a shot, _I thought as I stared at the doorbell. I slowly reached over for the bell, but, quickly dropped my hand. _Ugh! Just ring the freaking doorbell! _I thought as I closed my eyes, and quickly slammed my hand against the doorbell.

My heart thumped as I heard waited for a response. I half wanted him to get the door and I half hoped he wasn't home. Just my luck, he opened the door. We stared at each other for a while.

"I, uh. . .well. . .uh. . ." I stammered.

He continued to stare at me. I gulped.

"Well, I thought that. . .maybe. . .we should. . .talk?" I squeaked. We stared at each other again until he opened the door a little wider.

"Come in," He said politely. I awkwardly stepped inside and turned to him and cleared my voice.

"What do you want to talk about?" He asked dumbly as he walked passed me and headed to the kitchen. I followed him. This was getting ridiculous.

"Why are you acting like this?" I demanded. He started boiling hot water.

"What do you mean?" He asked, his back to me.

"You know what I mean! We're not talking and-and it seems as if we _fought _or something!" I cried. "Is it because of what happened last night?!"

There was a moment of silence. He turned to me and grinned.

"You know, that sounded really wrong," He chuckled. I tried to fight back a smile but laughed.

"You're right," I said, grinning a little. He turned back to his boiling water, and then, turned down the gas and poured the hot water into an instant ramen cup. He sealed the lid, and, turned to me. I looked away, feeling uncomfortable.

I cleared my throat. "Anyways. . .you know what I mean. . ." I finally said.

Silence.

"Yeah," He said with a sigh. "I'm sorry, okay? It's just that. . .I didn't want you to see me like that. . ."

My eyes widened at him. "What do you mean?"

"I mean. . .getting all beat up by a gang whom I owe big money to. . .you probably thought I was some kind of loser or something," He mumbled. I gaped.

"No! Why-why would I think that?! Is that why you were avoiding me?! Because you were _ashamed?_" I cried. He scratched his head.

"Well, yeah. . ." He muttered. He turned to me. "Anyways, _you _were avoiding me too. Why were _you _avoiding me?"

"Because, you were avoiding me first," I replied. He looked away.

"Oh."

"Naruto, I. . .I would never think that. . .you know?"

Silence.

"What's going on between you and Sasuke?" He finally asked. I blushed.

"Oh. . .you noticed?"

"It's not something really hard to miss."

"Um. . .well. . .we're going out. . ."

"Oh."

"Yeah. . ." I glimpsed at him. His expression was completely blank. He turned to me and smiled.

"Congrats," He said. I blinked.

"Um, yeah, thanks," I said quietly.

More silence.

"Naruto. . ." I finally began. He turned back to his ramen cup, and peeled the lid open. Smoke arose from it as he took out a pair of chopsticks and a glass from the cupboard. Then, he opened the fridge and took out the rotten milk as he poured it into his glass.

I snorted. "I wouldn't drink that if I were you."

He turned to me, confused.

"It's outdated," I pointed out. He looked at the top of the carton where it said the expired date and groaned as he tossed the carton into the trash can.

"Time to buy more milk," He mumbled. I chuckled. He turned back to me. "Remind me why you're still here."

"Pff," I rolled my eyes. He grinned.

"I was just kidding," He teased as he walked over to me. "Ramen?" He offered. I stared at the cup of ramen, to him, and shook my head.

"No thanks," I said.

"Okay, but you're missing out," Naruto said as he took a huge bite of it with his chopsticks. I grinned. He looked so cute, his mouth full of ramen. My eyes widened as I quickly shook my head. What was I thinking?!

"Ano, Sakura-chan. . ." He said after he swallowed his huge bite of ramen. I turned to him. He was looking out the window. "Don't you wish that life was fairer?" I stared at him for a while. _Naruto. . ._I thought. I sighed.

"Naruto, I'll help you pay the debt," I finally said, ignoring his question. He turned to me.

"Eh?" He asked.

"You owe money to those gangsters, right? Well, I'll help you pay the debt," I repeated. His eyes widened at me.

"No. . .that's wrong. . .it's my business," Naruto mumbled. I shook my head.

"I'm going to help you pay for it, no matter what you say," I said. He stared at me in awe and he sniffled.

"S-Sakura-chan. . ." He stammered. "A-arigatou. . ." I grinned at him.

"Don't worry about it," I said. "How much do you owe anyways?" He bit his lower lip and scratched the back of his head.

"Eheheh. . .about twenty thousand dollars. . ." He grinned apologetically. I rolled my eyes.

"Naruto, you _idiot,_" I growled. He laughed apologetically.

"Sorry," He squeaked. I sighed.

"It's alright. . ." I groaned. "But this is the first and last time I'm going to help you with this. You've got to be more responsible from now on. . ."

"Eh, don't worry! I will!" Naruto promised. I smiled at him.

"Okay. . .well, I'd better get going now," I said. "Thanks for letting me in your house." He smiled at me.

"No problem," He said. I stepped out the door and sighed with happiness. My heart felt content now. Everything was alright between me and Naruto, and I had a boyfriend which the whole neighborhood wanted. What more could I wish for?

**A/N: Next chapter will be up shortly!**


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